Most Haunted Hotels

Posted: 12.05.2024 | Updated: 02.05.2025

Los Angeles: sun-baked palm trees, Hollywood, and the glitterati of the silver screen. LA has been the home of celebritys and the accompanying movie madness since the halcyon days of cinema. One thing that sprung up in abundance back then, like so many starlets’ careers, are the haunted hotels of LA. 

Like the actors that filled the screen and enthralled millions worldwide, a lot of these haunted hotels have quite the story to tell. In some cases, it’s a dark and murky view of LA’s spookier side.

You can grab your slice of the haunted Hollyweird on an LA Ghost Tour.

WHAT ARE THE MOST HAUNTED HOTELS IN LOS ANGELES?

When it comes to telling a story, Hollywood knows how to get it done. The same could be said of some of the city’s most notable haunted hotels. Three of them cover a lot of ground, with stories ranging from the unsettling, spine-chilling, and the downright bizarre. 

• THE CECIL HOTEL
• CHATEAU MARMONT
• HOTEL ROOSEVELT

THE CECIL HOTEL

HISTORY OF THE CECIL HOTEL

100 years ago, The Cecil Hotel was a glittering testament to Hollywood’s opulent dream-weaving. Hotelier William Banks Hanner invested $1M, roughly $13M in today’s money, into alabaster statues, pristine stained-glass windows, and an elegant marble lobby. In 1924, for Banks Hanner, the good times did roll. 

Sadly, The Cecil rolled right into the Great Depression, and the neighborhood and hotel never really recovered from the hard luck. 1931 would see the first suicide at the Cecil. It would not be the last. Now a part of ‘Skid Row’, the hotel maintains a far more sinister notoriety.

THE DARKNESS OF THE CECIL HOTEL

Between April 1984 and August 1985, one deranged man would conduct a murderous reign of terror on California’s coast. Known as ‘The Night Stalker’, Richard Ramirez would claim the lives of 38 people. When conducting his brand of evil in LA, he chose the Cecil Hotel as his base of operations. Ramirez went as far as to dispose of bloody evidence in the hotel dumpster. 

In 1991, Austrian journalist Jack Unterweger was found to have killed 3 sex workers in LA that he was reporting on. Although Unterweger took his own life while in custody, the serial killer has chosen to stay at The Cecil Hotel.

Passers-by have claimed to have seen shadowy figures and heard the sound of blood-curdling screams emanating from the hotel. 

THE ENDURING MYSTERY OF ELISA LAM

The circumstances of Canadian tourist Elisa Lam’s demise in 2013 made news worldwide as the downright creepy nature of her last sighting chilled and puzzled onlookers the world over. 

Elisa Lam exhibited concerning behavior during her stay at The Cecil while making a journey of self-discovery through Southern California. Diagnosed with bipolar disorder and having battled mental illness for years, Lam was last seen in the hotel.

On Jan 31st, she was recorded entering an elevator before exhibiting behaviour akin to hiding from a threat or person. Lam appears to interact or react to a presence, but nobody is there. 

Soon after, guests complained about black shower water and an odd taste of tap water. A maintenance man went to check the water tanks. 

Lam’s body was found naked, floating within, on Feb 20th, 2013. She was 21 years old. The how and why of Lam’s entry into the water tank remain a contentious issue.

CHATEAU MARMONT

HISTORY OF THE CHATEAU MARMONT

Loosely inspired by Frances Chateau d’Amboise, the resting place of Leonardo Di Vinci, Chateau Marmont has provided seclusion and a keeper of secrets since 1929. Erected on what was mere sagebrush and scrub and perched on Sunset Boulevard, the hotel has been a short stay and residence to some of the brightest of Hollywood stars for generations. 

Originally, the Chateau Marmont was accessed by what is now the rear of the building, with a cloistered walkway and manicured garden entrance. In keeping with the chateau’s evolution, today, the main entrance is accessed through a single stone arched door that carefully hides what is inside. 

WHO HAUNTS CHATEAU MARMONT? 

Celebrated Austrian-German photographer Helmut Newton was known the world over for his stunning and often erotically charged fashion photography. From 1957, Newton had chosen to winter at Chateau Marmont, traveling from his alternate abode in Monte Carlo. 

On January 23rd, 2004, while leaving the Chateau towards Sunset Boulevard, Newton suffered a heart attack and lost control of his Cadillac and his life in the resulting crash. 

Numerous guests have sighted the figure of an older man, fitting Newton’s description,  wandering the Chateau in a dizzy state, often bleeding.

When approached, the figure has been nowhere to be found. The spectral figure of Hemut Newton may very well now spend both his summers and winters of the afterlife on the Mamonts grounds. 

Poolside guests have often heard the sound of a camera shutter clattering only to find no one else was there.

Security guards have been alerted to the sound of loud laughter and glasses clinking together but are left stunned when entering the reported bungalows to find deserted rooms. There is speculation as to who the other jovial apparition could be.

THE DEATH OF THE FUNNY MAN

In 1999, a toddler with his family in one of the bungalows began laughing and conversing with thin air in front of his curious mother.

When questioned, the toddler replied that he was “talking to the funny man.” Later, as the mother flicked through a magazine highlighting the famous guests of the Marmont, the toddler leapt up and pointed to a photo of comedic legend John Belushi, crying out, “The funny man!” 

John Belushi, the wild man of comedy and a gifted actor, was no stranger to substance abuse and the turmoil of fame. He was found unresponsive in Bungalow No.3 on March 5th, 1982, after consuming a cocktail of heroin and cocaine, known as a ‘speedball.” 

Belushi’s death at 33 years old shocked the world and forever locked both Belushi and the Chateau Marmont in a marriage of infamy. 

Comedian turned politician Al Franken was a close friend of Belushi and chose to stay in Bungalow No.3 a mere week after the troubled comic departed the earth. Franken, a confessed skeptic, had suffered a restless sleep. He later awoke in the night to the vaporous figure of his friend Belushi at the end of the bed.

Stunned, Franken cried out, “John?!?” and reached for his glasses. By the time they sat upon the bridge of his nose, the figure of Belushi had once again disappeared. 

THE ROOSEVELT HOTEL

Arguably, the crown jewel of Hollywood hotels is an establishment that mirrors the unbridled optimism of the roaring 20s. The Roosevelt was the brainchild of Chinese Theater owner Sid Grauman, iconic movie producer Louis B. Mayer, and actor Douglass Fairbanks.

Arriving in Hollywood in 1926, the Spanish-Colonial-style Roosevelt quickly established itself as a magnet for movie stars and studio executives. The hotel even hosted the first Oscars ceremony in 1929.

Clark Gable and Carole Lombard are said to have conducted their secret affair on the 12th-floor Penthouse. This scandal grew the hotel’s reputation with Hollywood’s paparazzi. Marylyn Monroe even lived in the hotel in the 1940s, and her connection with today’s Roosevelt runs deep.

IS THE ROOSEVELT HAUNTED?

The very fabric of the Roosevelt is interwoven with movie stars and celebrities, so it’s hardly a surprise that the Roosevelt ghosts are said to be notable names. Marilyn Monroe, who lived in the haunted hotel for nearly two years, is said to haunt room 1200. Guests and staff alike have claimed to have seen the long-dead icon glaring back at them in mirrors of her former suite.

Guests have claimed to have seen a well-dressed man in a white suit peering from windows onto the street below, with staff reporting the rooms empty. A blonde woman in a blue dress has terrified guests by walking through walls. Perhaps most tragic of all is the ghost of a 9-year-old girl named Caroline. She is said to stop guests at the Tropicana Pool to ask them if they have seen her mother. 

THE DARKEST OF GUESTS

In a far darker twist, the ghost of actor Montgomery Clift is said to haunt room 928. Clift resided at the hotel while filming the 1953 movie From Here To Eternity. Clift would often walk the halls practicing trumpet for a scene with guests through the years. Many claim they hear the disembodied sound of a trumpet within the room. 

Shockingly, some guests have claimed to have been woken by the ghost of Clift before experiencing the horrifying ordeal of the spectral figure holding them down in their beds. Another guest claimed to have seen Clift in Room 928 staring at them before turning and walking through a wall. 

HAUNTED LOS ANGELES

From the golden age of cinema to the ghosts of Hollywood’s haunted hotels, Los Angeles offers a fascinating look back into a bygone age. Some of its most loveable and lingering characters still persist today. If you are looking to catch a glimpse of Hollywood stars, both alive or otherwise, book your LA Ghost Tour.

Keep reading our blog for more haunting tales of haunted hotels from Hell Kitchen, Hollywood, and the other dark corners of The City of Angels. Follow us on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram for more spooky content!

Sources:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7vC4zrgPKQ&rco=1
• https://www.discovery.com/exploration/Cecil-Hotel-LA-Haunted-Reasons
• https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2021-02-10/netflix-the-vanishing-at-the-cecil-hotel-crime-scene-elisa-lam
• https://helmut-newton-foundation.org/en/helmut-newton/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9pQFsgSbOA
• https://www.lunaticsproject.com/post/haunted-history-the-hollywood-roosevelt-hotel
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7ElKleHYrY